NCAA PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines—Perpetual Help squeaked past Emilio Aguinaldo College, 55-54, in the NCAA Season 98 men’s basketball tournament on Tuesday at San Juan Arena.
The Altas barely escaped the Generals, who squandered several opportunities in the endgame.
“For me, destiny was on our side. They had drives and shots that I thought were going in. It’s all about the breaks of the game. Maybe this game was really for us,” said Perpetual Help head coach Myk Saguiguit, whose squad hiked its record to 4-3.
The Altas led 55-50 with 3:32 left but were held scoreless the rest of the way. The Generals, however, failed to fully capitalize on Perpetual Help’s drought.
JP Maguliano and Kriss Gurtiza converted a layup and two free throws respectively to pull the Generals within one, 55-54, with 1:09 left.
Ralph Robin had a chance to give EAC the lead but he missed two free throws and a layup as time ran out.
The Generals, who only had Joshua Tolentino as their lone double-digit scorer with 15 points, slumped to their sixth consecutive loss in as many games.
Mark Omega posted a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds while Rey Barcuma tallied 10 points.